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How to do a digital detox when you're addicted to the internet

Enthusiastic fan of Jilly Cooper, books, horses and singing. Not a made-up person.

Thursday 4 August 2016

Nealry 60 per cent of us (59 per cent) are addicted to the internet, according to a new survey, which has led 34 per cent of users to take up to a month offline as part of a "digital detox".

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Ofcom's annual Communications Market Report, which surveys our digital behaviour, found that one in 10 adults goes online more than 50 times daily, with 42 per cent checking apps or the internet more than 10 times a day.

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Four in 10 adults felt that they were regularly passed over by a friend or relative in favour of a smartphone or tablet, and under-25s are now the social group most likely to switch off, or detox.

We're living in interesting times to say the least, and with social media bringing a constant stream of news into our timelines, it can be easy to feel brought down by an onslaught of tragedy, if not the steady tick-tick of dopamine caused by getting a new notification.

As GLAMOUR's social media editor, a digital detox is not high on my list of current plans (things that would not go down well in the office: "what's going on on Facebook, Kat?" "Dunno...") but a few years ago I gave up Twitter for Lent. Forty days without news updates, more than a month of having to find out the news at a slow pace - it sounded awful! However, once I got used to it, I felt more relaxed than I had done in ages: although it did mean that I had to learn about breaking news about four hours after everyone else.

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If you aren't quite ready to go cold turkey, but want to cut down, here are five tips for easing off on your internet use.

1) Practise self-care

You are not a one-man news agency. When breaking news occurs, particularly tragedy, it can be tempting to click on everything, read everything, and see images that would never make it into mainstream broadcasts or print. Take a step back and remove yourself from the whirlwind. When I worked at Twitter on Moments, my boss made sure to mix up our shifts so we weren't always working at the forefront of news, and got "kitten and cute" shifts to break it all up.

Self care is also about not opening yourself up to people and situations which you know can affect your confidence and mental state.

2) Turn off your notifications

Every time that little red flag pops up on your homescreen, you get a shot of dopamine which triggers your pleasure centres, and sense of validation. "Oh hi, I feel popular and needed," it says.

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Switch them off. No notifications, no banners, no flags - nothing. If you want to find out if someone has messaged you, go into the app.

3) Be mindful of how many times you check your apps

We've all got caught up in that ridiculous circle where you check Facebook, switch to Twitter, head over to Instagram and then immediately go back to Facebook again. Take a step back, breathe and calm down.

Make an effort to space out how often you check your social media apps, and if you need something new to read, grab a newspaper app, or crack open something to read. We have the best book suggestions for your summer reading, right here.

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4) Work out what you're trying to get from being online

Is it staying informed, or staying connected? Do you want to feel part of what's going on? I am by no means saying to take up knitting to give your hands something else to do, but once you figure out what itch you're trying to scratch, it's easier to find something to replace it.

Last summer, a friend and I set up a book club dedicated to the work of Jilly Cooper. That, and the acapella pop choir I sing in, coupled with taking up horse riding again (shout out to Trent Park Equestrian Centre in north London!) have given me proper hobbies - something I realised I hadn't had for a good year. It breaks up the time between me being online, and makes me remember I can function in the real world too - I'm addicted to Pokémon Go, obviously, but at least that's got me walking.

5) Plug your devices in to charge when you get home - and leave them there

Both my husband and I are device devotees, but I'm markedly worse than he is. Now, I leave my stuff in our bedroom if we're hanging out somewhere else watching TV, or reading, and they only come out for urgent tweetalong purposes, such as The Great British Bake-Off or Only Connect. And then they need to go straight back, or I'll fall down a Wikipedia hole and resurface five hours later.

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How do you balance your internet use? Tweet us @GlamourMagUK using #DigitalDetox